Smarter Than You Think
by musicmidnight
Summary: Nico claims that Thalia would suffer without him. After a year of fighting, she proves him wrong. Rated T for swearing. Thalico breakup? Yeah? I'll have a cover image for it when I can find a good one.


_If I had one wish, it'd be for you and all your friends that didn't like me._

Thalia had a hard time believing that it was only a year ago that she ended her relationship with the famous son of Hades, Nico di Angelo. It wasn't that Thalia wanted someone else, and it wasn't that Nico drove her away. It was simply because they grew apart, and they were more different than they thought they were. The memory made Thalia's stomach do weird things. Either way, Nico, always with his little clique, acted different around his friends. Let it be known that his friends thought he'd do way better with an Aphrodite slut than Thalia.

_And if I had one wish, it'd be that we had danced more at that apocryphal wedding._

Two years ago, Percy had married Annabeth on the same day that Thalia noticed Nico was a little...off. The ceremony was rememberable. It was the reception that caught her off guard.

There they were, in a private, beautiful hotel ballroom reserved for The Wedding of Percabeth. (A name Nico and Thalia had come up with, was meant to be a joke but everyone seemed to like it so it stuck.) Everyone was dancing; Percy with Annabeth, Katie with Travis, Connor with an Aphrodite girl who wasn't stuck up, Jason with Piper, Clarisse with Chris, and so on with all the couples. Even Chiron was nodding his head to the beat a bit. Thalia was one of the only girls not dancing, accompanied by Rachel. She _would_ have been dancing with Nico, but it seemed that Nico was more interested in the champagne than a dance with his girlfriend.

_If I sound angry, I'm sorry, this body can only cry for so long._

Nico always used to accuse Thalia of being angry with him. Which, deep down was mildly true, though Thalia's stress and sadness building up inside seemed to take the more of it. Thalia wasn't fond of Nico's laziness or smart comments. She never liked his arrogance, and she never had a thing for his ego, which was like a second head sitting atop his shoulders. So to speak, you could say she was 'done'.

_And if you want to blame me, then go on. I'm smiling now 'cause I'm smarter than you think. I'm smarter than you, I'm starter than you think._

During one of their many fights, Nico claimed that _she_ was the reason he got this way. _She_ was to blame that we has so arrogant and cocky and ignorant. _She_ was the reason why he was so lazy. _She_ caused him to think that he should never accept defeat, which he never did.

_Well, I apologize for not telling you that my halo was cut from paper. Sliced from the fibers that made up all the parts, that we were together._

One night, Thalia snapped. Nico got an earful.

"You know what, Nico? What the hell is wrong with you? You think I'm to blame that you've turned in to such a _bitch_ these days?"

"Oh, _I'm_ the bitch? What about _you?_ Always calling me out on things you know I had nothing to do with. You're to blame, baby. _You're_ the reason I'm like this! _You're_ doing this to yourself!"

"Do you think I _wanted_ you to be this way? I've been nothing but an angel to you this past year, always there for you while you're sick or if you come home drunk and when you wake up with a hangover. There's no ghost doing your cleanup for you, Jackass. It's _me._ It's _been_ me. Without me, you'd be a drunkard out of the road standing on Death's edge and you fucking _know_ it!"

With that, she threw some belongings into a bag and walked out the door.

Later, he would come and apologize, and Thalia would always accept, though she didn't know why she do it. It's not like they've been through this a thousand times, right? Wrong.

_And even though I miss you, I'm thankful, it's obvious that this world was futile. So put your hands together and clap for the painful choice you made, 'cause it's right._

Thalia's somewhat grateful that Nico's turned into a PMSing bitch. After all, she left him and found a better life. She did miss him, she missed the scent of his cabin and the way he used to play with her hair. But she didn't need a tug on her hair to know she was safe. So, thank you Nico, for turning into a douche. You've earned a round-of-applause.

_I'm smarter than you, I'm smarter than you think._

The day she left him, she received a text message explaining how lost she'd be without him:

_Thals,_

_So you took the easy way out, huh? Congrats, babe. You'll soon come to realize that you're gonna miss this, and you'll never get through anything without me. Good luck, don't do anything stupid, like you usually do. It's my dad that's judging your cruddy soul, after all._

Oh, if only he could see her now!

_You are the narcissist, you're everything you saw in me. Into the sea you fell, in love with the reflection of yourself._

When Narcissus didn't realize what strong love Echo had for him, Aphrodite punished him while she let Echo die a painless death. Narcissus fell in love with his own reflection, thinking it was a beautiful nymph. Every time he tried to seize the 'nymph', it would disappear, leaving him confused and totally lead-on by is own self. He eventually died. Thus, Narcissus became a code name for the cocky, egotistic, arrogant son of Hades. Thalia and Annabeth thought it fit perfectly.

_You are the narcissist, you're everything you saw in me. Into the ocean's grip, I swam away to watch you drift. You failed to see I'm smarter than you think. I'm smarter than you think._

Thalia hadn't a care in the world. At least, she thought, until Percy came to her doorstep. Percy, still remaining a good friend of Nico, explained that Nico was completely helpless and misses Thalia 'so much'.

"You should really see him, Thals. He's an emotional wreck."

"Well, I was too, when I was with him. I'm not going back to him, Percy."

"Come on. At least try to help him out. He's barely hanging on, Thals. It's the least you can do."

Huffing, Thalia agreed to visit the wrecked Ghost King one last time. She didn't tell Percy she only agreed to rub it in his face.

"Thalia," Nico claimed, "Oh my gods...my Thalia. I miss you so much."

"I'll give you two some time." Percy said, shutting the door.

"I'm not yours anymore, Death Breath. You don't have the privilege to call me that anymore."

"But...Thalia," he tried, "What about us? What we had? Does that mean nothing anymore? Can't you see I'm a wreck without you?"

"Can't you see I was a wreck_ with_ you? Nico, I came to tell you you're wrong. I finally found a life, believe it or not, I'm done helping you through your hangovers and sicknesses. Why can't you see that? Do you honestly think I'd come back after the hell you put me through?"

Nico, taken aback, threw his head in his hands and started to weep silently.

"I'm better off, Nico. I'm sorry. Go find someone else that makes you happy and treat her right. I'm not traveling that road again. I'm a lot smarter than you credited me for." Thalia said, with a hint of finality in her voice.

Turning around, stepping over the empty bottles that once held various types of alcohol, she hailed Percy and ordered he take her home. She triumphantly threw herself on her bed with only one thought on her mind.

_I'm smarter than you, I'm smarter than you think._

* * *

**A/N: Okay, you hate me. I know I know. It just had to be done! I always read these amazing fanfictions about Thalico's happily ever after, let's make out and have some kids. So I thought, why not play bad cop and make them break up for a change? Don't get me wrong, I'm a hardcore Thalico shipper and all, but this song seemed to fit this plot perfectly. By the way, this song is called 'Smarter' by Eisley. It's a really awesome song, awesome band, you should listen to them. It's been stuck in my head all day, I just had to do something with it! R&R. Thank you guys so much.**


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